In the days since the original three planks of my Big Huge Manifesto, people all over the Republic are talking Blue Wave - surf’s up, dude!

However, I feel the need to clarify a few things on which the Blue Wave will not compromise, the failure of any one of these would de-rail, in my mind, a reunification of the two Talossan peoples - in no particular order:

The Blue Wave again iterates its belief that the time of the Talossan monarchy is past and that the time for a truly republican
form of government has come and that it is best for Talossa. However, in the meantime, the Blue Wave believes a happy medium is possible between monarchy and republic:

1. The secret ballot

No self-respecting democracy makes public the votes of its people in any election, no matter how “big” or “small”. In days gone by (Old Talossa), it was considered important for citizens to know his/her vote was counted correctly - making election votes public knowledge did just that without the difficulty inherent in a secret-ballot system.

However, making votes public knowledge invites abuse and retaliation, and the Blue Wave believes the time for the right of the secret ballot to be made available to all Talossans is long-since past.

2. One man - one vote

The 200-seat Cosâ under the current Kingdom system allows for a political party to dole out the seats it wins in General Election to as many or as few (within certain legal parameters and limitations) people as it wishes. A party can reward its veteran members with many seats and give a newbie just one seat, thereby giving him (or her) a voice in what goes one without being able to do much “damage”. In 2003, this argument was a direct reaction to the literal inability of Talossa to fill the 20-seat Cosâ, which, in days before Ben drove off people right and left, was the cornerstone of the original incarnation of the 1997 Organic Law.

The Republic of Talossa introduced in its constitution an innovation, which the Blue Wave supports without reservation: allowing the legislature to change its size, the modification taking effect only after the next election.

3. New citizen or not? - let the people decide!

The idea of letting a single person, as is now done in the Kingdom, decide who “gets in” and who does not does have have the transparency such a momentus choice needs. A citizen of Talossa has a direct say over not just the workings of the government, but also over the nations finances, which is in recent years, become a more temporal matter than it ever has before in the history of our nation.

More than ever, the Blue Wave believes it is of paramount importance that the people, and all of the people, be given the full and direct responsibility to grant citizenship. As Ben Madison proved, it takes but one person to tear the nation apart, and it is incumbent on each and every voting-age citizen to take a direct part in this most-important part of our national life: guarding the gates of Talossa against the next Davron.

The Blue Wave does not advocate the return of the Cort Interview with veto power, which was a part of the Old Talossa immigration procedure, but it does advocate
the return of or the continuance of (and these little details are negotiable) the Civics Test, Cort Questions, valid ID (to be sure we don’t get undesirable freaks), as well as a probationary period of no more than, say, two months or so before a vote on citizenship can commence.

4. A truly impotent monarchy

Strip the Talossan monarchy of all political and legislative powers, if it has not yet been done already. If the monarch is found to be colluding with political parties, it can be grounds for expulsion from Talossa. Make it required that all title of nobility, particularly Për La Naziun, be confirmed by both houses of the Ziu as well as, in the case of Për La Naziun, be confirmed by a referendum of the people.

Strip the monarch of all rights to appoint (even if it’s only formality as it, technically, is now) heads of government, etc. This will avoid loopholes like Ben never officially dissolving Cosás because he forgot to, etc. (which means fully half the Cosâs ever convened are, technically, still in session).

Place the powers formally held by the Monarch in the hands of an elected person (President, Chancellor, whatever).

5. No more boy kings!

To avoid the potential embarrasment of that that could have come about by way of the protracted striking of Louis I from all obelisks, the Blue Wave believes that no-one under the age of eighteen years should be monarch of Talosssa. Additionally, the potential use of Louis I as a proxy by the former Robert I makes the idea of a hereditary monarchy unpalatable.

The Blue Wave believes an elected monarchy, not a hereditary one is what is best for Talossa.

6. A community of inclusivity (new!)

Here is where, admittedly, I get into the realms of subjective “opinion”, but I feel compelled to add this because it could de-rail the entire reunification process. As much as some people may or may not approve of
certain life attributes or certain life choices of certain people, we must operate in an environment of tolerance and graciousness. “Tolerance” does not have to mean “condoning”. But “tolerance” absolutely must mean fostering a culture that no matter what someone’s sexual orientation may be, said person will be treated on public fora
with the same respect and dignity as anyone else.